Russian Airstrikes Cut Off Idlib Residents From their Properties

A heavy wave of shelling by Russian warplanes, along with artillery bombardment and drone attacks by regime forces in October, has caused extensive destruction to critical public infrastructure, private buildings, and homes, in areas controlled by the Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham-affiliated Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) in Idlib and Aleppo governorates. The bombardment has also frightened farmers, obstructing their access to harvest their olive crops.

Despite a decrease in the intensity of shelling in November, warplanes and drones over SSG-controlled areas – particularly in Jabal Al-Zawiya and western rural Aleppo – continue to restrict civilian movement for fear of being targeted. On October 31, regime forces targeted agricultural land around the towns of Nayrab, Maarat Al-Naasan, and Sarmin in eastern Idlib, and Darat Izza and Sheikh Suleiman in western Aleppo with heavy artillery.

On the same day, an olive-picking workshop near Nayrab was hit by a kamikaze drone launched by regime forces from their bases in Saraqib. According to the Syria Response Coordinators Team, regime forces have used 874 kamikaze drones to attack targets in Idlib and Aleppo since early 2024. Russian officers and technicians oversee the use of these drones, with specialised regime units trained in their use. These kamikaze drones, guided by reconnaissance planes, are capable of distinguishing between civilian and military targets.

The largest wave of shelling took place between October 14 and 17, with 122 air and artillery strikes, some of which targeted homes, shops, and agricultural land, according to a statement released by David Carden, the Deputy Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis, on October 17. The attacks hit numerous military and civilian sites in opposition-held areas,  a correspondent for  The Syria Report said. Although Russian airstrikes have ceased, artillery shelling and drone attacks by regime forces stationed in eastern rural Idlib continue.

Around 45 airstrikes were conducted by Russian warplanes on various locations in Idlib between October 14 and 17, with two Russian warplanes striking a single target simultaneously each time, the correspondent explained. Russian aircraft conduct sorties in squadrons, each with six Sukhoi SU-35 or SU-24 jets. In a statement, the Ministry of Local Administration and Services under the SSG said that 62 homes were targeted in the cities and towns of Idlib, Kafr Nouran, Atareb, Sahara, Taqad, Rahab, Al-Ibzemo, Darat Izza, Al-Bara, Deir Sunbul, and Maarat Belit. The shelling caused complete or partial destruction to the targeted homes and properties. It is noticeable that high-explosive missiles were used, leaving clear structural damage to the buildings that did not suffer a total collapse.

Due to the escalation, towns and cities near the frontlines between opposition and regime forces in western rural Aleppo and eastern rural Idlib are witnessing a continuous exodus of civilians. Many are fleeing toward central Idlib, areas near the Turkish border, or regions under the control of the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) in northwestern Aleppo. This movement is happening amid reports of potential new battles in the area, fuelled by military preparations on both sides. By the end of October, 1,843 people had been displaced from 37 villages and towns in the region, according to the Syria Response Coordinators Team.

In addition to displacement, the escalation has also hindered farmers in these areas from reaching their land to harvest olives. Abdallah, a farmer from the town of Kafr Oweid in southern Idlib, fears approaching his six-dunum olive grove, planted with 100 trees. With his family displaced from the area, he was forced to hire an olive-picking crew, incurring extra costs. These crews seize the opportunity to work during lulls in the shelling. Abdallah’s situation differs from those recently displaced to camps in northern Idlib, whose olive groves are vulnerable to theft due to the mass exodus from areas close to the southern Idlib frontlines, which has made them more exposed to attacks. The town, once home to 18,000 residents, now has fewer than 100 inhabitants.

In Kafr Oweid, an airstrike on October 17 left a large crater at least six metres in diameter on a seven-dunum fig farm owned by Ali Ahmad, uprooting several trees. This was not the first time Ali’s land had been hit. In 2022, a similar strike occurred. Although the reason for targeting this land is unclear, Ali suspects the strikes are due to an abandoned poultry farm adjacent to his property, which the Russians might believe to be a weapons depot or military base, though it has been deserted for about seven years.

The airstrikes have primarily targeted facilities in agricultural areas, including poultry farms and olive presses, as well as any locations with human activity, such as a stone-cutting site in the Al-Hebat area west of Maarrat Misrin. The site, spanning five dunums and owned by a resident of Maarrat Misrin, is located near the Yasmin Camp. On October 16, the stone-cutting site was hit by a strike that destroyed its roof and storage area and damaged the yard for sorting and collecting stone blocks. Similar airstrikes have affected poultry farms, warehouses, and isolated houses on the outskirts of towns and villages. These sites are persistent targets, leading many owners to refrain from visiting or repairing them.

Meanwhile, a farmer named Fayyad decided to lease out his one-hectare olive grove around Kafr Oweid to a picking crew, fearing bombardment. The crew takes between a third and half of the yield, assuming the risk of being targeted. The crew consists of entire families, each earning 200 Turkish lira per day.

On the Ain Sheeb road west of Idlib, a strike with high-explosive missiles on October 16 destroyed a two-story wooden furniture workshop employing around 70 workers in two shifts, killing 10 of them. The workshop, owned by a member of the Balsha family, was set up on private land. Syria Civil Defence teams – also known as White Helmets – worked around the clock using hand tools and heavy machinery to rescue the wounded and recover the dead from the rubble.

On October 14, airstrikes targeted a power substation in Ain Al-Zarqa, west of Idlib, destroying two transformers with a capacity of 40 MVA (megavolt-amperes), along with the control room and main circuit breakers, severely damaging the building. The SSG had renovated and restarted this substation nearly two years ago. The station powered water pumps at the Ayn Al-Zarqa spring, cutting off drinking water for dozens of villages and irrigation water for approximately 10,000 hectares of farmland, according to a post by the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation in the Salvation Government on Facebook on October 16.